Now That You're Gone
by Katriona
Summary: Set about a week after the season 5 finale, Oh My Goddess. Piper has lost a lot of things because of the Elders, but losing Leo is the last straw. She gives up her powers, takes Wyatt and moves across the country to start her life over. *r&r**COMPLETED*
1. Leaving Home

Now That You're Gone  
  
Summary: Set about a week after the season 5 finale, Oh My Goddess. Piper has lost a lot of things because of the Elders, but losing Leo is the last straw. She gives up her powers, takes Wyatt and moves across the country to start her life over.  
  
A/N: I know, I said I wouldn't start any fics until I finished the ones I've got, but after seeing OMG1&2 I couldn't *not* write a fic. As you may have noticed (*g*), I tend to get side-tracked, so if you want an update fast, please review.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Piper, Phoebe, Paige, Leo, the Elders, Wyatt, or anyone else you recognize. Ananda, Lin, and anyone you don't know are mine.  
  
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Piper slammed her suitcase shut, tears rolling down her face. It had been one week since Leo had left. It had just now sunk in that he wasn't coming back, and Piper couldn't deal with that. She couldn't go on being a Charmed One without him, and so she'd decided to leave.  
  
Four-month-old Wyatt cooed from his baby carrier on the bed next to her. "I know, honey, I know. I miss him, too," she sniffled, pulling his baby blanket up around him. This blanket was plain white; she was leaving the blue one with the triquetra symbol behind. She didn't want to take anything that would remind her of magic. She didn't want to have anything to do with magic at all.  
  
Piper reached over to the nightstand, and picked up a baby bottle filled with a clear blue potion. In her last act as a witch, Piper bound her son's powers.  
  
Now she was ready to leave. With her suitcase in one hand, and Wyatt's carrier in the other, she marched downstairs. Her sisters came out of the kitchen to meet her in foyer.  
  
"Piper, you can't do this," Phoebe implored. "You can't just leave us here. You can't just give up."  
  
"Why not?" Piper asked tearfully. "He did."  
  
She set down her suitcase and the baby, and hugged her sisters. All three of them were crying.  
  
Though she knew she couldn't change her sister's mind, Paige tried anyway. "Piper, please. We can help you through this, if you'll just stay-"  
  
"I can't," Piper interrupted. "I'm sorry. I can't. This is just something I have to do." She gave each of her sisters a kiss good-bye. "I love you both. I hope you know that."  
  
With that, she picked up the baby and her things, and walked out the door. She put the baby in the backseat, put the suitcase in the trunk with everything else she owned, got in the car, and drove off. She never once looked back. 


	2. Fresh Start

A few days later, Piper was in a small town in upstate New York, ready to start over. She'd found a nice, cabin-like house right on top of the lake. Because of its beautiful but remote location, the owners had had trouble selling it. Relieved to finally have a buyer, they let Piper and Wyatt move in right away.  
  
Piper had barely gotten inside when there was a knock at the door. A big, boisterous woman let herself in.  
  
"Hello, dear," the woman greeted jovially. Despite her somewhat larger-than-life appearance, with fiery red hair and bright-coloured clothes and make-up, she projected a comforting, friendly feeling. "I'm your new neighbor," she introduced herself. "My name's Ananda, but most people around here just call me Nana. I live right next door."  
  
Piper smiled at her, instantly taking a liking to the woman. "Nice to meet you, Nana. I'm Piper, and this is my son, Wyatt."  
  
"Oh, isn't he a cutie!" Nana exclaimed, taking the baby from Piper. "Piper, doll, he's just adorable. Oh, I love kids. If you ever need a baby-sitter, please, call me."  
  
"I will," Piper promised, seeing how good Nana was with him. Like his mother, Wyatt seemed to adore Nana. "He really likes you," Piper commented. "He's usually so fussy with strangers."  
  
Nana smiled at her, then returned to beaming down at Wyatt. "Like I said, doll, I love kids." She handed the baby back to Piper. "I'd better let you get settled. If you need anything, just ask."  
  
Piper took her son, thanking Nana for the offer. Just as the older woman was leaving, Piper remembered something she'd wanted to ask. "Nana, could you tell me where you do your shopping around here? You know - grocery store, department store, drug store - things like that. I haven't really had a chance to look around town yet."  
  
"It's a small town, dear, everything's pretty much in one place," Nana replied. She proceeded to give Piper directions to the town center, then she kissed Wyatt good-bye, and went out the same way she came in.  
  
As soon as Nana was gone, Piper set Wyatt down in his bassinet, and ran into the bathroom. She'd been sick every day since Leo left. At first, she thought it was just stress, but now, she wasn't so sure.  
  
She rinsed her mouth out with water, then went outside to unpack the rest of the things from her trunk. Leaving the boxes carelessly in her front hallway, Piper buckled Wyatt into his car seat, and drove off into the center of town, following the directions Nana had given her.  
  
"Nana wasn't kidding when she said 'small town', was she?" Piper asked her baby son a few minutes later, when they pulled up in front of the market. Their house, it turned out, was on the very edge of town. Still, it had only taken them a few minutes to reach the town's center. As Nana had said, most of the business were grouped together.  
  
Piper and Wyatt went into the market first, to buy something for them both to eat. Wyatt had had his bottle at regular intervals since they left San Fransisco, but Piper hadn't eaten since the previous afternoon. She bought basic necessities - baby food, milk, juice, and some salad for her dinner, then proceeded to the check-out line.  
  
"Are you new in town?" the middle-aged, balding man behind the counter asked. "I've never seen you before. Welcome; I'm Kurtis Mahoney."  
  
"Piper Halliwell," she replied, shaking his outstretched hand. "And this is my son, Wyatt. We just moved into that house by the lake."  
  
"Ah, that place," Kurtis nodded. "It's been empty for quite a while. Good to see someone's finally moved in."  
  
Piper smiled, took her groceries, and went next door to the drug store. Taking a handbasket from the hook on the wall, she moved quickly down the aisles, picking up aspirin, lotion, and vitamins. Among these things, she nonchalantly slipped a home pregnancy test in before rushing to the check-out counter.  
  
A teen-aged boy was working at the counter. He carelessly slid the items across the counter, not seeming to pay attention to what he was doing. Piper, who had been drumming her fingers nervously on the counter, stopped when he got to the test. She drew in a deep breath; it wouldn't scan.  
  
"Vaughn, would you stop fooling around?" the customer behind Piper said after the boy had swipped the box over the scanner a few times. "You're holding it the wrong way." Rolling her eyes, she turned to Piper. "Sorry, he does that. I'm Darvy Bartlett, by the way."  
  
Piper introduced herself to Darvy as Vaughn finished ringing up her purchases.  
  
"I guess I'll see you around," Darvy called after her.  
  
Piper nodded, took her bags, and hurried out to her car. She quickly put Wyatt and the packages in the back seat, and then, hands shaking, drove home. 


	3. Bump In The Road

Piper put Wyatt down for his nap as soon as she got home. She quickly put the groceries away, and then apprehensively pulled out the pregnancy test. She paced around the house for about a quarter of an hour before steeling her nerves and going into the upstairs bathroom.  
  
After taking the test, she put it on the sink, washed her hands, and went into the master bedroom to pace some more.  
  
She looked around her. The room was only half unpacked. Boxes were everywhere. So were pictures of herself and Leo. She picked up the nearest one, and smashed it against the wall, hardly hearing the sound of the picture frame shattering.  
  
"Damn you all!" she whispered through a steady stream of tears. She wasn't sure if the Elders could hear her, and she didn't care. Piper didn't need to look at the stick; she was pretty sure of what it would tell her. "Damn you! How the hell could you do this to me? You've taken everything from me - My mother, my sister, every chance I've ever had at being happy. And what about you, Leo? You know I've always hated the Elders for what they've done to me, to us, and to our family. How the hell am I supposed to accept that the one person I loved and trusted more than anything is suddenly one of them? How the hell do I deal with that?" Crying even harder now, she slammed another picture down, and went back into the bathroom.  
  
Just as Piper had thought, the test was positive. She sank down against the bathtub, absently placing one hand over her stomach, and pulled her knees up to her chin. She stayed like that, small sobs wracking her body, until she heard Wyatt crying downstairs.  
  
Piper dried her face with a tissue, then went downstairs to her son.  
  
"It's okay," she cooed, although she knew her voice, as cracked and quavering as it was, couldn't be very comforting. Wyatt's cries turned to whimpers, but he didn't completely calm down. The same could be said for his mother.  
  
She sat down on the living room couch, rocking him gently. Alone, and now with two children, Piper had never been more scared in her life. She clung desperately to them both, holding Wyatt close to her in one arm and rubbing her stomach with her free hand. She knew she needed to be strong for them, but she wasn't sure that she could. She wished more than anything that Leo were there, but he wasn't, and he never would be. This thought got her crying again, which made Wyatt start up. She didn't comfort him this time. She didn't know how.  
  
This went on for a few minutes, until Nana came in.  
  
"Piper?" she called. "Doll, what's wrong?" she asked, taking Wyatt from her.  
  
Piper shook her head, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. "I'm pregnant. I know that's supposed to be a good thing, and it is, it really is, but... I'm just so scared."  
  
Nana, having successfully calmed the baby down, took a seat next to his overwhelmed young mother. "Of course you're scared," she answered. "That's only natural. But dear, you've done this before."  
  
"Not by myself," Piper said miserably. "It was different when Wyatt was born. I had my husband, Leo, and my two sisters."  
  
Nana shifted Wyatt to put an arm around Piper. "What happened to them?" she asked gently.  
  
Piper sniffled. "Leo... left us. He walked out a little more than a week ago. Trust me, he's not coming back. And now... I still can't believe this is happening. We tried for so long before we had Wyatt. I never expected it to happen now." She sighed. "You know the worst part of it? I don't hate him. I want to, I want to be able to hate him for not choosing us. But I can't, because I know he really does love me."  
  
Nana pulled Piper to her, encouraging the younger woman to cry on her shoulder. After a few minutes, she asked, "What about your sisters?"  
  
Piper shook her head. "I can't go back to them. I left them a few days ago, because I couldn't deal. I just can't go back to them now."  
  
Nana stroked Piper's hair comfortingly, and Piper leaned back against her, reaching out toward her son. She'd only known Nana for a few hours, but she felt as though she's known her a lifetime. It suddenly struck Piper how much Nana reminded her of a younger, more rambunctious version of her own Grams.  
  
"If you can't go back, then you'll stay here," Nana said. "Everyone in town is going to love you. Don't worry about a thing, doll."  
  
"Thank you," Piper murmured. Her crying jag had left her exhausted.  
  
"Why don't you go lay down for a while?" Nana suggested. "Go on, go. I'll stay with Wyatt."  
  
Knowing full well that Nana wouldn't take 'no' for an answer, Piper nodded gratefully. She kissed Wyatt, and went upstairs. 


	4. Shock Value

After cleaning up the glass on the floor, Piper lay down, but she couldn't sleep. A thousand thoughts were racing through her head. She closed her eyes, trying to sort them out.  
  
Once she started thinking clearly, she realized that, as much as it would hurt to do this without him, she didn't need Leo. She was strong, she never would have made it this far if she wasn't. She could do this without him. After all, he hadn't left her any choice.  
  
Telling herself that everything would be okay, she finally drifted off to sleep. She woke up a little over an hour later, the longest she'd slept during the day since Wyatt was born. Feeling well-rested and a lot better than she had before, she went downstairs to look for Nana and Wyatt.  
  
She found them in the back yard, sitting near the lake. Nana was talking to Darvy, and rocking Wyatt in the same gentle, steady rhythm as the water. Darvy was holding a baby girl a little bit older than Wyatt, and two boys were running around a few feet away.  
  
"Feeling okay now, doll?" Nana asked.  
  
Piper nodded. "I'm great. Thanks."  
  
"Good," Nana responded. "I know you've already met Darvy."  
  
Darvy smiled at her. "Nana told me it came up positive. Congratulations."  
  
"Thanks," Piper replied, taking her son.  
  
"I've got three kids of my own," Darvy continued. "Trust me, only two at once is a piece of cake."  
  
Piper laughed, shifting Wyatt to her hip. "How old are yours?"  
  
"Ashton is four, Brennan is two, and Claire is six months," Darvy replied. "How about Wyatt?"  
  
"He's four months," Piper said, beaming down at him. His reddish-brown hair, long for a baby so young, was gleaming in the sunlight. Darvy reached out and tousled it.  
  
"Want to switch?" she offered.  
  
"Sure," Piper replied, handing over Wyatt and taking Claire. The two women spent a while cooing over each other's babies, while Nana watched over Darvy's boys.  
  
"Ashton, don't let your brother go that close to the water!" Nana called out.  
  
Darvy looked over to where her older kids were playing. "Ash, Bren, come back over here," she called. Sighing, she looked at Piper. "Take my advice, sweetie, don't let him learn to walk or talk."  
  
Piper bit her lip, as though she was seriously considering it. "I'll have to teach him eventually," she concluded. "I'll need him to help me with his little brother or sister."  
  
Darvy shrugged her agreement. "I guess you're right," she said reluctently. "I'm still living in fear of the day when Claire gets to be just as wild as her brothers."  
  
Piper nodded. "A friend of mine back home has kids. I've watched them for him a few times, and they're usually good, but I swear, just one drop of anything remotely sugary... Wyatt is never getting candy. Ever."  
  
Darvy and Nana both laughed.  
  
"Honey, it's not that bad," Nana said comfortingly.  
  
"I know," Piper replied. "Still, I hope this one's a girl," she added, watching Ashton and Brennan argue. "I grew up with two sisters, and I love them, but sometimes I think I would've gotten along better with a brother..."  
  
She paused. A smile came to her face as she remembered the time that Prue had turned into a man.  
  
"I hear ya," Darvy responded, also watching her boys. "You should see the way they are with Claire. They're already so protective of her. I won't even have to worry when she starts to date."  
  
Piper smiled. "I know Wyatt's going to be a good big brother. He's a lot like his Daddy."  
  
There was a short, awkward pause. Nana had already repeated to Darvy what Piper had told her about how Leo left.  
  
"That's a good thing," Piper told them, reading their faces."I'm glad Wyatt's like his father. I just wish his father were here to see it."  
  
Nana and Darvy each put an arm around Piper. She smiled at them, grateful she'd found such good friends. She knew she'd need them in the months to come.  
  
Suddenly, Wyatt and Claire both started to get fussy. Darvy and Piper switched back, and Piper looked at her watch. It was nearly six.  
  
"He's probably hungry," she said, rocking him.  
  
Darvy nodded. "I should probably get A, B, and C home, too."  
  
Nana had already rounded up the boys. Darvy waved good-bye to Piper, Nana, and Wyatt before taking Brennan by the hand and, keeping a watchful eye on Ashton, started home.  
  
"Piper, doll, do you need any help getting this one fed and put to sleep?" Nana asked.  
  
Piper shook her head. "That's okay, Nana. If he won't go to sleep right away, I'll just dig around the boxes for his mobile. That thing always puts him right to sleep."  
  
Nana smiled. "And what about getting you fed and put to sleep?"  
  
Piper grinned. "That's a bit more complicated..." Shifting Wyatt to her hip, she gave Nana a tight, one-armed hug. "Thank you again for everything you've done for us today. Really, I don't know how I could have handled this alone."  
  
Nana hugged her back, saying, "Dear, that's what I'm here for."  
  
Waving good-bye, Piper trekked back up to the house. When she got inside, Wyatt was half asleep, but he woke up as soon as she put him in his high chair. He watched her curiously as she moved around the kitchen, getting his bottle ready and fixing a small salad for herself. She tested the bottle on her wrist, then handed it to him, thankful that he'd recently learned how to hold it for himself.  
  
She sat down across from him, picking at her salad. Reminding herself that it was good for the baby, she managed to eat most of it before Wyatt had had enough of his bottle and needed to be burped.  
  
A while later, Wyatt was asleep in his crib, and Piper was lying on her bed, tired but somehow wide awake, and reviewing her situation once again.  
  
Now that most of the shock had worn off, she realized that it wasn't so bad. It was a beautiful town she'd relocated to, and she'd already made friends closer than the ones she'd had back home, where magic had seriously impacted her relationships. She didn't have to worry about that now. She was safe, and aside from that sharp, searing pain in her heart in the place in her heart that Leo used to fill, she was happy. She had a beautiful baby boy, and another child on the way. She didn't think she could ask for anything more.  
  
And then her eyes fell on a picture of Leo, sticking out from the top of a cardboard box. Thinking about him, she cried herself to sleep.  
  
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A/N: Just so you know, the next chapter skips ahead a few months. And yeah. Review. ::puppy eyes:: 


	5. Arrival

Seven months later, Prudence Melinda Halliwell was born. Like her brother, she was six weeks early, but despite a low birth weight, she was in perfect health. Piper used the name that she and Leo had both decided on for a girl, but she soon found that calling her child by her big sister's name was more painful than she'd thought it would be, and so she called her daughter by her middle name, Melinda, which Nana soon shortened to Lin. By the time the child was a few minutes old, the nickname had already stuck.  
  
"Hey, Lin," Piper cooed, beaming down at the baby in her arms, who was now a little over five hours old. Darvy, who'd been with Piper during the delivery, was perched on the edge of the bed, hovering over Piper and the baby. Nana, who'd also been there during Lin's birth, had left to get Wyatt, who was in the waiting room with Ashton, Brennan, Claire, and Kurtis, who'd been watching the kids since Piper went into labor the night before.  
  
"Here we are," Nana said cheerfully, entering Piper's hospital room with eleven-month-old Wyatt on her hip. She placed the little boy on Piper's bedside, where Darvy could keep an eye on him.  
  
"Wyatt, say hi to your baby sister, Lin," Piper instructed gently.  
  
Wyatt reached out toward the baby, and she wrapped her tiny hand around his fingers. He began talking to her in a sort of babyish prattle. Lin looked up at him, her large blue eyes twinkling, and gurgled happily. Piper smiled, glad that her two children were getting along so well already.  
  
Nana cleared her throat. "Piper, love, if you're feeling up to visitors, there's someone outside who'd like to meet you..."  
  
Piper nodded, wondering who it could possibly be. Nana went over to the door, and motioned for someone to come in. Standing behind her, Piper could just make out the greying hair and dark suit of a medium-sized man. Nana and the man stepped inside, and Piper gasped.  
  
"Daddy!" she cried out joyfully.  
  
Victor stepped past Nana to give his daughter a hug and a kiss. "Hi, sweetheart."  
  
"Daddy, what are you doing here?" Piper asked, surprised.  
  
"I wanted to see my baby girl's baby girl," he replied, looking down at the baby. "She's gorgeous, Piper. She looks exactly like you. What did you name her?"  
  
"Prudence," Piper replied wistfully. "Prudence Melinda. We're calling her Lin for short."  
  
Victor tugged her hair comfortingly, then shifted his gaze to the baby boy on her lap. "This must be Wyatt," he guessed, picking the boy up. "Hey, Wyatt. I'm your grandfather. You don't remember me, do you?"  
  
Wyatt shook his head, looking to his mother for reassurance. Piper smiled at him, so he looked back at his grandfather with more curiousity than suspiscion.  
  
"I didn't think you would," Victor continued, smiling at him. "The last time I saw you, you were about as old as your little sister is now."  
  
Wyatt looked at Lin, and then back at Victor in confusion, unable to imagine himself as ever having been that young.  
  
Victor laughed. "You have gotten big, haven't you?"  
  
Wyatt nodded eagerly. "Big bwothew," he exclaimed, trying to pronounce the words his mother had been talking about the past few weeks. The adults all laughed, and he looked at them each in turn, wondering what was so funny.  
  
"That's right, Wyatt, you're a big brother now," Darvy told him. "Just like Ashton and Brennan."  
  
Nana took him from his grandfather. "We'd better let you two catch up," she said, starting toward the door.  
  
Darvy gave Piper a kiss before getting up. "We'll be down the hall if you need us."  
  
Piper nodded, watching them leave. The door clicked shut behind them. For the first time in almost a year, father and daughter were alone together.  
  
"How did you find me?" Piper asked, not altogether displeased that he did.  
  
Victor shrugged. "It was more by chance than anything. I knew Ananda from a few years back, through a series of running into each other back when I lived in New York City. We've stayed in touch on and off since then, but neither of us ever mentioned you until recently, until she told me about a friend of hers who had a little boy named Wyatt. That led to me telling her all about you, but I thought it was just coincedence. Ananda was the one who put two and two together and came up with four."  
  
Piper nodded, processing this. "How long have you known?"  
  
"A few days. As soon as she told me that you were there, I made arrangements to come. When I got here, I found out you were in labor," he replied. There was a pause. "Do your sisters know?"  
  
"About the baby?" Piper shook her head. "No. I didn't find out I was pregnant until I got here. I haven't spoken to them at all since... I just couldn't face them, after the way I left. I couldn't face you."  
  
He looked surprised. "Piper, you know all too well that I'm not in a position to criticise you for leaving. You could have come to me. Why didn't you?"  
  
Again, she shook her head. "No, Daddy. I couldn't. I couldn't deal with losing Leo, so I cut ties with everyone. It was stupid, and cowardly, but there you go."  
  
He sat down on the bed, putting his arms around her and the baby, who was half asleep.  
  
Piper leaned against him. "Are you going to tell them? Phoebe and Paige, I mean. Are you going to tell them about Lin, and where I am, and everything else?"  
  
He sighed. "Not if you don't want me to."  
  
She took a moment to think about this. "Don't," she said finally. "I can hardly think about them without wanting to cry, I can hardly say my own daughter's name out loud because it reminds me of... I'm not ready to go back to them yet. Until I am, I don't think it's fair to remind them that they've got a sister and a nephew and now a neice they haven't even met. I don't want them to think about us as much as I think about them."  
  
A tear slid down her cheek. Victor wiped it away. "I won't tell them," he promised. "But I think you should. Honey, they do think about you, constantly. Nothing you do or don't say will make them love you any less. You have to know that."  
  
She nodded. Carefully, so as not to wake Lin, she shifted the baby's weight to one arm and used her free hand to wipe the tears that were falling now. "Have you seen them lately?" she asked, sniffling.  
  
"I'm going to, tomorrow. I promised them I'd come weeks ago, before I knew you were here," he explained. "My plane leaves tonight."  
  
Piper nodded. She looked at the clock, and realised that he should probably be going. It was already pretty late, and the airport was a two-hour drive from there, what with the traffic and all. "If you have to tell them something," she began, her voice quavering with emotion, "Tell them I love them."  
  
Victor leaned in, kissing her and the baby. "I love you," he said, getting up.  
  
He was halfway out the door before he heard her whisper, "I love you, Daddy." 


	6. Return

Five years went by. Lin grew into a sweet, beautiful little girl, with her mother's silky hair and her father's blue eyes. She absolutely adored her big brother, Wyatt, who'd become extremely bright and very protective of his mother and sister. Piper did her best to immerse herself in her friends and her children, but she never did stop thinking about Leo.  
  
Then one day he showed up.  
  
Piper was at home, relaxing while Wyatt and Lin were outside playing with Darvy's kids under Nana's watchful eye. She was in the kitchen making herself lunch when suddenly, she sensed someone behind her. Even after she heard his voice, she couldn't quite believe it was really him.  
  
"Piper," began Leo softly.  
  
A few tears slid softly down her cheek as she whispered, "If I turn around, do you promise you'll still be there?"  
  
"I promise," he said. She turned around. The sad, hurt expression on her face broke his heart. He went to put his arms around her, but she pushed him away.  
  
"Don't," she said, her voice shaking. "If you're going to leave again, then just don't."  
  
He embraced her tightly, trying to ignore the way she stiffened defensively. "I'm not leaving, not ever again. God, Piper, I love you so much. And Wyatt... I couldn't stay away. I am so sorry that I ever left."  
  
"Then what the hell took you so long?" she demanded.  
  
"I couldn't find you," he replied. "After you bound Wyatt's powers, and severed the bond with your sisters, I couldn't track you anymore. I've spent the last few years looking for you. I missed you so much."  
  
Piper shook her head, leaning against the counter behind her. She couldn't let him hurt her again.  
  
Leo knew exactly what she was thinking. He cupped her chin in his hand, forcing her to look at him. "You know how much I love you. You've always known. I'm never going to stop loving you. If you can't trust me, then at least trust that."  
  
She could tell from his face that he meant every word, and that the last five years had been killing him as much as they had been killing her. She nodded, and then leaned into him, sobbing. He put his arms around her, kidding her and assuring her that everything would be okay.  
  
They were interrupted by five small children running in. Piper pulled away, drying her eyes with the back of her hand. Nana followed the kids in, took one look at Leo, and guessed from Piper's expression who he was.  
  
"Kids, let's go back outside and play for a little while longer," she suggested nervously.  
  
"Wait, Nana," Piper said. "Please, just take Ash, Bren, and Claire."  
  
Nana nodded, and led them back out the door. Wyatt stared at Leo suspiciously, while Lin looked at him with mere curiousity. Finally, she started toward him.  
  
"No, Lin," Wyatt said, stopping her.  
  
"Wyatt..." Lin whined. Strangers were a rarity in that town, and she wanted to meet the one that had just shown up in her kitchen.  
  
"Prudence Melinda," Wyatt warned. He was the only person who ever used his sister's full name. He pulled her toward him protectively. "Stay by me. Don't go near him, he's making Mommy sad."  
  
Piper shook her head, forcing a smile. "I'm not sad, baby. And you don't have to be afraid of him."  
  
Leo looked at the red-headed six-year-old with eyes resembling Leo's own and a precocious attitude that was all Piper, and then looked back at his wife. "This is... him?"  
  
Piper nodded. "Yes, Leo. That's Wyatt. Our son. And he's standing right next to our daughter."  
  
Again, Leo looked back at the kids, and then at Piper, trying to comprehend what she'd just said. Finally, it registered that somehow he was the father of this little girl. He knelt down in front of her and her brother. "You want to know who I am?" he asked. They both nodded eagerly. "I'm your daddy."  
  
Wyatt and Lin both looked past him, to their mother. Piper nodded slowly.  
  
"Daddy!" Lin shouted, throwing her arms around him.  
  
Wyatt was a lot more wary. "If you're our daddy, then how come I've never seen you?"  
  
Leo frowned, the pain of the past five years stinging at him again. "You have seen me, Wyatt," he replied. "You don't remember, but I was there when you were a baby." He reached into his pocket, and pulled out an old, worn blue baby blanket. On the blanket was the symbol of the triquetra. "This used to be your favourite blanket."  
  
Wyatt reached out and took it, studying it curiously. He thought there was something famliar about it.  
  
While Wyatt was looking at the blanket, Leo turned to Lin. "And what's your name, sweetie?"  
  
"Prudence Melinda Halliwell," the little girl answered, with the perfect exactness of a small child. "But everybody calls me Lin."  
  
Leo turned back to look at Piper. "You used the name we picked out?"  
  
"Yeah, well, I wanted to give her a name that meant something," Piper explained. "Calling her after Prue was just so hard, so I decided to use her middle name. Just like the little girl we saw when..." She paused, not wanting to bring up anything about her former life.  
  
Leo got up, and put an arm around her. "How... when did you get pregnant? Why didn't I know?"  
  
"I didn't even know, not until I came here. I mean, I should have realised it," Piper admitted, "I thought it was just stress, what with everything that was going on, and you being up in Elderland, and everything else."  
  
"Mommy, where's Elderland?" Wyatt asked.  
  
"No where, baby," Piper replied automatically.  
  
"Are there rides there, like at the amusement park?" Lin wanted to know.  
  
Leo smiled. "No, sweetheart. 'Elderland' is what your Mommy calls the place where I used to work."  
  
Piper raised an eyebrow. "Used to?"  
  
He nodded. "I told you I wasn't leaving again. I resigned as an Elder as soon as I heard that you'd left. But by then I couldn't track you, because you bound yours and Wyatt's powers."  
  
"Well, you've found us," Piper said slowly. "Now what?"  
  
"Now, I don't want to lose you again," he replied. "I want to stay. If you'll take me back."  
  
Piper wanted nothing more than to say yes, but something was holding her back. "Lin, Wyatt, go play upstairs for a minute," she commanded.  
  
The kids ran off, and Leo looked at her expectantly.  
  
"I don't know," she said, her voice strained. "Leo, I love you and that hasn't changed. I'm just not sure if I can trust you."  
  
Leo's face fell. "I can't say I blame you," he responded. "Leaving you like that, leaving Wyatt, and not even knowing about Lin... That the worst thing I possibly could have done, and I did it. But Piper, I want to make things right."  
  
He caressed her hair, and she started to cry. "You can't. You can't get back all those things you missed, like when Lin was born, or when Wyatt started walking, or... or the first time the kids asked me where their daddy was. You've missed out on their entire lives up to now, and there's no way you can ever get that back."  
  
"I know," he said, holding her. "I know. I can't change the past. But will you at least let me be a part of their future?"  
  
Piper was silent, deep in thought. After a few long minutes, she sighed. "Okay. You can stay. But on one condition. Once, you told me you'd clip your wings for me. I didn't want you to then, and I don't want you to now. Not for me. But our children are a completely different matter. I don't want them exposed to magic, ever. I don't want to see them get hurt the same way I have. They are the reason that I gave up magic, and they're the reason I want you to. I know that it's a lot to ask, but for the sake of our children, I'm asking. Promise me that you'll clip your wings, and that our children will never do magic."  
  
Leo's throat tightened. She was right, it was a lot to ask. A hell of a lot. But if that was what he needed to do in order to regain her trust and get her back, he wouldn't hesitate. "I'll do it," he said.  
  
Piper knew at once that he was sincere. This was enough to restore her faith in him, and so she did what she'd wanted to do every night for five years. She threw her arms around his neck, and kissed him.  
  
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A/N: I was going to end it here, but I decided to keep going for just a little bit longer. Stay tuned for chapter 7.  
  
A/N2: This fic hit the 50+ review mark after last chapter. Thanks for all the feedback. :D 


	7. Full Circle

They pulled out of the kiss, their faces inches apart. They each took a deep breath, collecting their thoughts. Leo was the first to speak.  
  
"Before I clip my wings, there's something I have to do," he told her. She nodded her consent, and he stepped back, then disappeared in a flash of white light.  
  
He orbed into the manor attic. No one was there; the place looked like it hadn't been entered in years. Doing his best to ignore the memories that were mingled with the dust, he went downstairs.  
  
Phoebe and Paige were in the kitchen talking, but they both fell silent when they saw him.  
  
"Leo!" they exclaimed at the same time. They got up and ran to hug him.  
  
"I missed you guys so much," he said, returning their embrace. "How have you been?"  
  
Paige looked down, and Phoebe shrugged. "We've been okay," she said. "It was... hard. We tried to go on without the Power of Three, relying on spells and potions, but then one day a... a demon attacked and... Paige was almost killed..." she let her voice trail off, blinking back tears at the memory.  
  
"After I came out of the coma, we decided magic was too much of a risk," Paige continued. "So we gave it up. That was a little over three years ago. Less than two years after Piper left."  
  
Phoebe looked up at Leo suddenly. "Piper. Have you seen her? Is she okay? Where is she?"  
  
"Can you bring us to her? Or bring her to us? How's Wyatt?" Paige cut in.  
  
Leo put up his hands, deflecting their questions. "One thing at a time. Yes, I've seen Piper. I just came from there. She doesn't know I'm here. She's... somewhere in the vicinity of okay, but I don't think she's quite there yet. She lives in upstate New York now, and I came here to bring you to her. Wyatt is.. amazing. You guys should see him. I can't believe he's six already. He's so smart, and protective of Piper and Lin."  
  
In their excitement over finally finding Piper, Paige and Phoebe didn't hear Lin's name, much less think of asking Leo who she was. Eagerly, they ran upstairs to pack.  
  
Barely half an hour later, they had all their things together, and were ready to go. They put their boxes and suitcases together, each held on to one, and used their free hands to hold on to Leo. He took their hands, squeezing them reassuringly, and orbed back to Piper.  
  
Piper was pacing around the living room, with Wyatt and Lin sitting still on the couch, when they orbed in. Piper's heart skipped a beat at the sight of Leo and her sisters - boxes and all - standing in front of her.  
  
"Oh my God," was the best she could manage. Her first instinct was to hug them, but then after thinking of how she completely abondoned them - no letters, no phone calls, no contact at all for five years - she hesitated. She stood, trembling, as they hurried to embrace her.  
  
"Shhh," Paige whispered, "It's okay now, honey."  
  
"I love you guys so much," Piper said, kissing them both. She started to cry, as did both of her sisters.  
  
"We love you, too," Phoebe responded.  
  
"I love you," Paige echoed.  
  
They seperated, trying in vain to dry their eyes.  
  
Paige's breath caught in her throat when she laid eyes on the two kids, sitting on the couch silently, the boy with his arms protectively around the girl. "Oh my... Is this... Wyatt?"  
  
Piper nodded. Her voice came out trembling and tear-choked. "Yeah. Um, there was something else I never told you guys. I didn't know it at the time, but... When I left, I was pregnant." She went over to the couch, kneeling down in front of her children. "Wyatt, Lin, I'd like you to meet you Aunt Phoebe and your Aunt Paige. Pheobe, Paige, say hello to your nephew, Wyatt... And your neice, Lin."  
  
Phoebe and Paige exchanged awed glances before moving toward the couch. Phoebe wrapped Wyatt up in a hug, while Paige scooped up Lin in her arms. They acquianted themselves with the kids while Leo and Piper looked on.  
  
"I'm glad you're finally here," Wyatt said. "Mommy used to tell us stories about you two, but we never thought we'd get to see you."  
  
"Why not, sweetie?" Phoebe asked.  
  
"Because whenever we asked Mommy about you, she'd tell us, but then we'd hear her crying after, when she thought we weren't listening," Lin said.  
  
Piper glued her eyes to the floor as her sisters got up to put their arms around her again.  
  
"Honey, why didn't you just come to us?" Paige asked.  
  
Piper shrugged helplessly. "A few reasons. At first, after Leo left, I couldn't handle being around anything that reminded me of the life I'd had with him. It just hurt to much, being with you guys. And then, after Lin was born, I just... I was afraid. I was afraid to go back, afraid of what you'd think. I was afraid that you would hate me for leaving you, for being so selfish."  
  
"Sweetie, no," Phoebe said. "We could never hate you."  
  
"God, Piper, we wanted you to come back so badly," Paige added. "You were afraid of what we would have thought? Honey, we would have thought that you'd been through hell, and that leaving was the only way you could think of to keep your children safe, and sweetheart, we never could have hated you for that."  
  
"And now?" Piper asked.  
  
"And now, we still think you've been through hell," Paige replied. "We also think that you've handled it the best you could, and that you did an amazing job raising these two kids all by yourself."  
  
"We also think that it's about time you got your family back," Phoebe added. "Are we wrong?"  
  
Piper shook her head. "No. You're not wrong. I need you. I love you." She kissed both of her sisters, and moved to kiss Leo when she realized he'd stepped away. "What are you doing?" she asked him.  
  
He looked upward. "I'm going to go do what I should have done years ago; What I would have done, had I known it would come to this."  
  
He didn't need to say anymore. They all knew that he was going to clip his wings.  
  
Piper put her arms around him, kissing him softly. "I love you for this."  
  
"I love you, too," he replied, before orbing out one last time.  
  
Piper stepped back toward her sisters, who were watching Lin and Wyatt play with a toy car they'd found tucked away under the end table. She smiled, looking around. She felt like she'd come full circle. She had her children, she had her sisters, and she had her husband. For the first time in years, she didn't feel like crying.  
  
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A/N: Well, that's it. How'd I do? ::puppy eyes:: Reviews would be wonderful, especially since this is the last chapter and all, so yeah. Let me know how this fic turned out. 


	8. Author's Note

Author's Note  
  
****************  
  
I just realized that I'd completely forgotten to do a follow-up, thank-you type chapter for everyone who's reviewed this fic. And seeing as how your reviews are what prompted me to write a sequel, you really do deserve some regocnition, so here you go. Thanks to everyone who reviewed. You are, in alphabetical order (I only used each name once, although some of you reviewed more than that):  
  
a, Alexis11, anjana, AngelWooWoo (::waves:: you rock, Vanessa), annabel-lee1, Astred, bbrookhottie03, bluekittydevil11, CF12, charmedchick, charmed4life, Charmedlover, Christie13, Clue)L3ss, CrazyCharm, Danielle L, Dena, Emsta, EvilPiper421, GypsyGirl, hallie, hallie2, HollysLilAngel59, Jackie, just always, KariAnn,   
  
Katie (::smooches::), KC-Piper-fan, Kerry-Ann G., Lexa, Leia, Lilie (your forums rock), madhatter27, Mary, maybepink, Mela, MerlinHalliwell, MissKit, nicole812, Piper, piperandleofanalways, piper5050, piper jnr, princesscatie21, Rhiannon, samantha, Shimmersea, svata2004, tatt skywalker, Tiara, tonym0724, uncreative,   
  
wAnNaBpIpEr, wilsonpro880 (dude, I haven't heard from you in forever), winjan  
  
...and that's all, folks. Thanks again for reviewing, and, due to overwhelming request, I have decided to listen to you and write a sequel. It's called "All You Thought You Left Behind", so look out for it if you haven't started reading it already.  
  
3,  
  
Cate 


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